Canon
Canon
(Another ZM essay, on the concept of having "canon" as opposed to the concept of having "cannons")
Canon (indefinite noun) - the concept of one right way or method, usually used in religious discussions
Cannon (definite noun) - generic term for a firearm larger than hand-held; a crew-served gun.
The "Swarm Cycle" is a shared-author "universe", and all are welcome to contribute. As the originator (The Thinking Horndog) put it once, he enjoys reading Swarm stories he didn't have to write. However, he set out some rules before letting others play in his sandbox.
To start with, we all have to play nice. We can't publish stories that end the game with the universe blowing up, we can't kill off each other's characters or bases, etc. Further, in order to have everyone writing stories that worked together, he established the broad history of this near-future science fiction universe.
Then, he wrote some stories in this setting which specified some details about it, like the fact that is a Navy and there are Marines and a Fleet Auxiliary, and there are two classes of people and it is much better to be a "Sponsor" than a "Concubine".
Okay, that in itself is revisionist history. We're pretty sure that he wrote some stories with a common theme first, then realised that he could tie them together. But at this point the result is the same. Every story published adds some to what we know about that universe, which brings us to a major caution: Every story published _restricts_ the universe by what it says.
If an author publishes a story about a fast ship that can accelerate at 20g and that's the maximum theoretical limit anyone can ever do, that limits every other author forever to ships that accelerate less than 20g. And it completely ruins the story _you_ were writing, about a hot-shot pilot who just graduated from basic flight school and is getting checked out in the Navy's latest interceptor that can accelerate at 30g and run anyone down...
It would be better if that first author said "Until we develop better compensators, we cannot accelerate faster than 20g", because that leaves it open for other authors to later write about ships built after better compensators are developed, etc. Then, a writer has to keep track of where on the Swarm "Timeline" he is writing. Was this before they developed that compensator or after? Right, his base is on Easton III and we _took_ that with the new fighters, so yes we can use them in our story. And so on.
Besides timeline issues, there are things that are not allowed, and other things that are required. These are not always obvious to the new reader, but if you violate those prohibitions you will get counseled.
The collected body of work, as hazily remembered by the collected authors but quickly referenced when needed, is our "canon". The collected authors, using the Swarm Authors Mailing List, look over each other's stories for canon problems as well as spelling and other errors. The following is a quick look at what the inviolable rules are:
The Swarm Cycle is set in the 'near future'
The Swarm Cycle is set in 'the near future' which is, unfortunately, a moving target. A writer can only write about what he or she knows. If you assume that 'the near future' world is just like the one you live in today, your story can be rendered nonsensical by a change in society that you didn't see coming. Many early stories don't make sense in today's world where everyone has a cell phone and many people have two or more.
Giving hard dates will come back to bite you. TH's 2009 story "The Academy" has, as a major character, an 82-year-old woman who remembers WW2 and the Great Depression. Running the numbers, this story is set in 2011 or earlier, which is no longer 'the near future'. This story could have been 'future-proofed' by having her talk about the Vietnam War and the Gas Embargo.
There is a war on
Really. It is a total war with the losers eaten, if they are human. We don't eat our enemy, they taste horrible (*), but they certainly eat us. Until we win this war, we really aren't doing much else. If you want to write about touring the galaxy for fun and profit, you _must_ provide a convincing explanation of how this benefits the war effort, because otherwise you wouldn't get a ship to do it in.
(* One of our writers Medik 4 7 was writing a story about marines in combat with the Swarm. After all the smoke had cleared the unit, whatever size it was, would chop up one of the dead Sa'arm, cook it, and ceremonially eat it. Yes, it tasted horrible, but they weren't eating for taste or nourishment. They were eating their foes as a bonding ritual for the survivors. Unfortunately, he never finished the story so all we know is the concept. People do crazy things under stress.
The AIs are everywhere
The Confederacy is run by AIs. The AIs don't necessarily trust us. In fact, before you can volunteer to join the Confederacy Navy or Marines and go fight the Sa'arm, you have to first take an aptitude test. If you don't pass that test, you aren't going as a volunteer.
And, the AIs watch everything you do. Again, the Confederacy came to us because they needed soldiers, not because they loved us. Any group who can beat the Sa'arm is by definition even more dangerous than the Sa'arm, and they are determined to not have us turn on them when the war is over.
They watch us. You cannot have your assassin sneak onto the bridge and kill the helmsman. The AI-controlled bridge hatch is normally closed for safety, and it would not open until you had given an acceptable reason for you wanting access to the bridge with a bowie knife in your hand. Being stunned and put in a cell is a more likely result. Your cerebral implant doesn't allow the AIs to read your thoughts, but it does allow the AIs to monitor your mental and emotional health. They know how humans react to combat. You are an off-duty shuttle pilot. There is simply no good reason for you to be at a starship's bridge hatch carrying a big knife, with your current blood chemistry.
The AIs have a limited view of what humans should be doing. A very large part of a Swarm story is often the struggle to do something else, whether that be raise rabbits or merely save your wife.
If you have left Earth, you cannot avoid the caste system
This is one of the concepts that give new writers the most trouble. We aren't saying that it's a good thing, we are saying we can't get away from it. _We_ didn't develop all the starships we are using, we got them from the Confederacy. They are all AI-run, and they know everything that is going on inside their ship. You can't even _get_ on one if you aren't authorized, because the AIs run the transporters, too. If you are on a ship then we know that you are supposed to be there. And, that means that you are either a trusted "Volunteer" or "Sponsor", or someone who didn't pass the test but agreed to go as the "Concubine" of a Sponsor.
A Volunteer owns/is responsible for two (or more, depending on his CAP test score) companions. They must keep him happy, he must keep them pregnant. All else is optional.
The status difference is stark, and we don't get any say in it. If you aren't willing to deal with it, you don't volunteer. You stay on Earth and get eaten when the Sa'arm get here. Ergo, if you are writing about people on a ship or a colony, by definition they are all part of the caste system of Sponsors and Concubines.
You may think owning a pair of beautiful women who have to obey you is great, or you may have grudgingly accepted it as the only way you could get your wife (and her hottie sister!) to come with you, but either way it is what it is and we cannot get rid of it.
Please remember that the caste system accomplishes several goals. It allows the combat soldiers to have someone nice to go home to instead of going home to sleep with Stinky Smith the SAW guy, it gets more live bodies off Earth and onto a colony making babies, and it simplifies the AI's security problem.
This was started as a B&D or D&S story line
The vast majority of stories at least touch on Bondage and Discipline or Dominance and Submission or slave ownership and are heavy on the sex. Note that we didn't mention gender here at all. Sponsors come in male and female, straight and bent. Concubines come in male and female also, and their personal preferences in sex partners may or may not be consulted when their owner is hosting a weekend block party.
With that said, by canon the vast majority of Volunteers are males who enjoy female company and are very happy owning two women. Whether the two women are equally as happy to be owned is a plot decision that depends upon their Sponsor's personality. The level of sex and related subjects that an author writes about is completely up to the author. These are, however, male-oriented adult adventure stories, so if you don't put any sex in it you'll have to compensate with a good plot, well-developed characters, and great writing.
(When TH created this concept, he was going through a contested divorce. Writing about what he'd REALLY like to do helped keep him from going to jail for doing it in real life. Many years later, he posted to the email list that his ex had finally died and was on her way to Hell. We all had a moment of silence in thanks for her part in creating such an entertaining set of stories.)
Some authors "own" some aspects of the universe
If you want to use characters or scenery invented by a different author, talk it over with him or her first. And don't use them up.
There are many grey areas
Everyone knows that we are building a fighting fleet as fast as we possibly can, using technology the Confederacy gave us. To simplify logistics and planning, once we decide on a design we tend to build lots of that design until we get a better one. Naturally, not everyone will agree that the shipyard planners are doing the right things.
Everyone knows what a "Castle" is, it's one of the very first designs we got. However, ten years into the war and a couple thousand built later, there are going to be some variations creep in. Yes, we have spreadsheets full of specs and documents with descriptions. We know what the normal weapons fit is for a Castle. A Castle has a Plasma Torpedo Launcher and two Particle Beam Turrets, everyone knows that.
However, if you want to write about one that got in a fight and took some damage and when it got repaired all that was available was an experimental laser cannon, then no one will blink if your ship is out there with a laser cannon and two PBTs. But, you will have to explain this in your story, how your ship came to be different. Your ship is the test-bed for field trials for this experimental laser cannon. Be aware that we have previously established that a Castle has power limitations and can't handle much more equipment. That's okay, your laser cannon uses much less power than the PTL did... This is all fine, just keep track of all the changes and let the readers know about them.
Meanwhile, the Marines give our writers a different challenge. Marines change their equipment, doctrine, and even their organization occasionally as time passes, better things become available, and we learn what works and what doesn't. If one writer has posted stories about how long it took to get decent armor out to the men and women on the front lines, another writer shouldn't post a story set in the very beginning of the war featuring Marines wearing invulnerable combat exo-skeletons. Set THAT story 10 or 15 years in, or change your first-year story to just the same armor that NATO troops wear on peacekeeping missions to central Africa. Because, you know, that's what our first Confederacy Marines _were_. They were NATO troops 'volunteered' for this extra duty.
If you aren't sure, ask
The collected authors are the guardians of canon. It is a sacred task entrusted to us back at the beginning of time by our creator, The Thinking Horndog. Some variations are allowed and are reasonable. Others are not. Ask _before_ you publish. Generally, if you read about your idea in another story, it's good, it's already been blessed. But, some stories get published without being blessed and we find out later that they have some super-weapon that wins the war and the hero gets the girl. The "gets the girl" part is good, we like that. The "wins the war" part is not acceptable. This is a wartime setting, and anything that ends the war closes our playground.
Occasionally, The Thinking Horndog steps in
We are all authors in our own right, and we are used to making our own minds up about what our characters do. Sometimes we cannot decide which of two (or more) incompatible concepts will be used and become canon. When that happens, TH has to step in and stop the squabbling. Note that he is likely to impose a completely different answer, one not yet proposed, thus leading to all sides being equally unhappy with the 'compromise'. This is generally avoided when possible, but we aren't always adults here in his playground.
When TH steps in, it is usually in the form of a decree that ends an argument. Sometimes, it takes us awhile to realize that THIS story had something happen that was impossible according to THAT story. Someone has to cut the Gordian Knot, and that's TH. Whatever he decides becomes canon on the spot, regardless of previous argument or published stories.
Canon issues
There are several subjects where one author has written THIS, but another has written THAT, and the two are completely antagonistic to each other. Alcohol use is a big one. There are also canon schisms over inter-system communications, pets, disposal of concubines.... You can find a summary of these issues here.
Non-Canon Stories
Sometimes we decide that a story contains things that 'jes' ain't right' and we agree that it is non-canon. An incomplete list of these stories can be found here.
Creating New Canon
As a general rule, 'canon' is something discovered or found or created in one of the published stories. Because of this, the collective Swarm Cycle writers prefer to review/edit/proofread prospective stories BEFORE they get published. It's far easier to correct minor mistakes before the public gets to see them. Hint, hint.
See also:
(Someday this will be a navigation template. It will provide a bar across the bottom of each article with useful navigation links. Until then, this is just a placeholder to get rid of all the red "broken link" indicators. -ZM User (talk) 10:00, 3 May 2024 (PDT))
